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House of Lords Approves Cannabis Reclassification

The government's plan to upgrade cannabis to class B is likely to go ahead after a House of Lords vote backed the move.

The proposal, due to come into force in January, goes against the advice of the government’s Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD). The council’s review of expert evidence on the harms of cannabis had recommended that the drug should retain class C status.
Last night, following a debate, the House of Lords voted by a majority of 52 against an amendment which would have overturned the government’s move.
Crossbencher Baroness Meacher’s proposed amendment would have seen a decision on the drug’s reclassification postponed for two years, allowing for a further review by the ACMD.
During the debate Lady Meacher said :
"We all know that alcohol is far more dangerous than cannabis. Alcohol abuse leads to violence, suicide, liver cirrhosis, mental illness, dependence, addiction and lasting effects on the foetus.
"In marked contrast, the only possible - possible - health effect of cannabis referred to in the government’s statement on reclassification is the possible causal link with schizophrenia."
The Baroness also pointed to evidence of the falling levels of cannabis use in the UK since the Blair government downgraded the drug to class C in 2004.
However, despite support from the Liberal Democrats, peers rejected the amendment by 116 votes to 64.
In response, Home Secretary Jacqui Smith re-emphasised the government’s stance on reclassification:
"This is the next step towards toughening our enforcement response - to ensure that repeat offenders know that we are serious about tackling the danger that the drug poses to individuals and in turn communities. We need to act now to protect future generations."
When Ms Smith first announced her intention to upgrade cannabis against the ACMD’s advice in July this year, DrugScope expressed "extreme disappointment" at the decision.

The potential link between cannabis and schizophrenia is such bullshit. There is virtually no biochemical evidence for such a link. Just because marijuana gets you high of course its going to make someone seem more insane or if someone is insane then doing any drugs is going to make them worse. What a load of shit.

This is how social scientists who don't really do anything except link up various kinds of data and call it a correlation really screw up real science. If you look up cannabis on any journal database nearly half the articles that come up are these kinds of crappy studies that just take populations and say oh look 20% of schizophrenics smoke weed there must be a link! This is such nonsense!